Election Commission of India: The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Thursday asked Chief Electoral Officers (CEOs) across 22 states and Union Territories to fast-track preparations for a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, signalling the start of a broad, nationwide update of voter lists ahead of the upcoming electoral cycle.
In its directive, the Commission instructed officials to complete all groundwork at the earliest. The move covers several states and UTs, including Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Chandigarh, among others.
As per the reports, Separate communications were sent to Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Ladakh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Delhi, Odisha, Sikkim, Tripura, Telangana and Uttarakhand. The poll body reminded them that a pan-India SIR had already been announced in June last year.
The revision exercise in these regions will run parallel to the first phase of Census 2027. House listing operations are scheduled between April and September, leading to an administrative overlap that officials acknowledge will require close coordination between departments.
The Commission also recalled that on June 24 last year, it had directed all CEOs except those in Bihar to begin pre revision activities. In Bihar, the SIR process had already started in June 2025.
Following the completion of the Bihar exercise, the ECI expanded the revision drive to 12 more states and UTs, including Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Puducherry, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Lakshadweep, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.
According to officials, the objective of the ongoing revision is to keep electoral rolls accurate and inclusive by incorporating new voters, removing ineligible names and correcting existing entries across the country.
